Refrigeration systems, as used in HVAC/R applications, utilize a closed loop refrigerant circuit to condition air inside an interior space. Over the years, the HVAC industry has been using refrigerants with ozone depleting chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). Due to the Montreal Protocol, the use of ozone depleting refrigerants is being phased out of the industry.
New refrigerants have been developed to comply with environmental regulations relating to global warming potential (GWP). In order to comply with the proposed GWP regulations, hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) and hydrocarbon refrigerants with various levels of flammability are being developed and manufactured.
Flammable refrigerants used in HVAC/R applications may leak and migrate to undesirable areas in the vicinity of the HVAC/R system. When the flammable refrigerants, in the presence of air or another oxidizer, are exposed to an ignition source, the potential for combustion events exists. There is therefore a need for an HVAC/R system which mitigates the spread of a flame to other nearby combustible materials, mitigates the propagation of premixed deflagrations or explosions that can cause significant overpressure and structural damage in confined spaces, and/or quenches ignition of refrigerant-air mixtures which may pose a risk to occupants.